The contour of a workpiece is thereby measured two-dimensionally or, in the alternative, also three-dimensionally. The contour meter encompasses a sensor for measuring measurement points along the workpiece contour, which is to be measured. The sensor can operate in a tactile or contact-free manner, for example optically. For example, a stylus instrument, which encompasses a measuring sensor, which is moved along a predetermined path of the contour, which is to be measured, can serve as contour meter. A stylus instrument is known, e.g. from DE 10 2009020 294 A1.
In the alternative, the contour can also be measured by means of a contour meter, which encompasses image processing, as it is known from DE 2007 016 502 A1, for example. The contour of the workpiece, which is to be measured, is thereby recorded by means of a camera. The contour of the workpiece is then determined via image processing. For this purpose, DE 10 2007 016 502 A1 proposes to initially configure the measuring task. The measuring range is thereby determined and a tool model is assigned to the measuring range.
When measuring the contour, in particular when using a measuring sensor, which is moved along the workpiece contour, it turned out that it is difficult to determine the transition points between two contour geometries, at which the contour geometries adjoin one another tangentially. This can be a tangential transition between two circular arc-shaped contour geometries or the tangential transition between a straight contour geometry and a circular arc-shaped contour geometry, for example. When measuring the workpiece contour, it is very difficult to determine the transition point to a sufficiently accurate extent. This, in turn, has the result that it is difficult to determine, whether the tangential transition was made with the desired accuracy in response to the production of the workpiece.